The 2016 OHL draft is a mere ten months away and it's time to start prepping the top 300 list, so yesterday we tracked down one of our most historically reliable scouting sources and asked him whether at this time he believes speedy offensive dynamo Chris Playfair (6'0", 160, Waterloo Wolves, 2000) is blue chip first round material (or not).

We've sure been hearing a lot of positive things about the ever so athletic (high end movement, agility and quickness) goalie prospect Arnold (5'9", 137, Nanaimo Clippers Peewee AAA, 2002), so we reached out to a scouting source yesterday, who laid it all out for us by making a prediction on where Campbell will fit into the bantam draft rankings two years from now in April 2017, when WHL brass ...

Updated Sunday EVENING: We're proud to present our 2000 date of birth top prospect ranking list, which ranks the top 1000 players currently available on the North American recruitment marketplace. This list is a consensus list on who'll be the most actively sought after recruits by NHL, CHL, USHL, NTDP, Prep School and Junior hockey programs in North America over the course of the next three ...

Final List Now Completed: We're proud to present our 2016 WHL bantam draft rankings (2001's) list, which ranks the top 200 prospect available on the western Canada recruitment marketplace. This list is a consensus list on who'll be the most actively sought after recruits by WHL teams over the course of the next twelve months. Big time players for this age group include the likes of fast rising ...

We're hearing a lot of superlative feedback on big, tall, athletic, game breaking 2002 goalie prospect Clark (Ridge Meadows Bantam, 5'8", 130, 2002), so we asked our local scout to provide us with an evaluation of Eric's game, and reveal whether or not he viewed the thirteen year old as a potential game changing 2017 bantam draft selection (and a true blue-chip prospect in the mold - caliber of ...

In our opinion, Rhinehart (6'0, 160, 2001, Lloydminster bantam AAA Heat) is everything a WHL franchise could possibly want in a defenseman (IQ, game sense, feel for the game and advanced skill sets). So, we asked one of our Alberta based scouts yesterday whether or not (if the bantam draft was held today) they'd pick Rhett in the top ten selections, or not, and received some rather intriguing ...

It's a bit early to be following the 2002 age group, however, one of our Alberta eyes in the sky couldn't help but mention to us that he believes world class skill forward (smart hands, solid first step quickness and brilliant creative offensive intelligence are his three hallmarks) Bode Hagan (5'2", 115, 2015, 2016, Leduc Oil Kings, 2002) will soar to new heights (and potentially be in the mix ...

We posed a rather difficult question yesterday to one of our Alberta scouts when we asked him flat-out (a) whether or not the ever so intelligent (and top ten ranked Alberta 2002 ranked prospect) Yoder (Peewee AA Vikings, 5'7", 145, Camrose Red Wings) is a consensus top sixty (top three round prospect) for the 2017 WHL draft, or not, at this present stage of his hockey development, and (b) what ...

Yes, it's a bit early to be making outright predictions for the 2017 OHL draft, however, one of our Ottawa area scouts couldn't resist putting in a few good words for all-around, heads up and mobile 2001 DOB Hilton (5'10", 165, D, Ottawa Jr. 67s AAA Minor Bantam, 2001). Our expert told us why he believes Aidan will be in the mix for a first round CCHL draft slot, top four round OHL draft and NCAA ...

Five names you can expect to see around D1, USHL, OHL, Prep School and NAHL rinks near you soon include the likes of highly skilled Russian - American dasher Sasha Chmelevski, big time presence of a defender Perry Winfree, highly skilled (and underrated, to boot) Brandon Kruse, the ever so offensively gifted Nick Hale and hard shooting (goal scorer) Brady Tkachuk.

In two or three years every hockey fan in North America is going to be familiar with these CHL and NCAA D1 stars of the future without a doubt, Lleyton Moore (world class defenseman), Cole Perfetti ...

Day by day Burkhardt (6'0", 185, Kent School, 1998) is getting better and better, and one of our astute scouts covering the New Jersey area has taken note! So, we got right to the point and asked the ...

A BC scout we've known for years contacted us yesterday, and confided he was shocked to see Denney (5'9", 150, Ridge Meadows, 2001) not make the grade as a top 200 ranked prospect for the WHL bantam ...

We're sure getting a ton of positive feedback lately on Zacharewicz' (2001, 6'0, 160, 01 PAL Jr Islanders) progress, so it was no surprise today to get yet another gushing report from one of our area ...

Lets face it, not many 5'6 finesse forwards in Western Canada will attract attention from the Western Hockey League for the 2016 WHL bantam draft, however, one of our Saskatchewan based scouts tell ...

We talked yesterday to one of our top USA area scouts, and he remarked it was unbelievable how USHL passed up on slick, offensive power play specialist Brenden Eng Tow (1999, 5'7", 150, TPH Thunder ...

We're expecting to see Lukas Svejkovsky (talented young player who will be world class when the size factor happens), Jayden Lee (one of the smartest defenseman in the province of British Columbia), ...

Yesterday we asked one of our American based scouts on the west coast why Raabe (5'9", 185, U16 American, 2000) wasn't selected in this years WHL bantam draft, and what his chances are of (a) getting ...

Is the ever so intelligent and versatile Huo (5'10", 135, Shawinigan Lake, 2001) a potential top eighty overall WHL Draft Selection for the 2016 WHL Draft, or not? We asked one of our BC area scouts ...

The new defensive breed of defenders playing the game today are expected to be big, skilled, mobile, quick and able to stand up on both blue lines, and in the opinion of one of our local Philadelphia ...

A few prospects, who played for the TPH Thunder u16 and were favorites of virtually every NCAA and USHL scout who watched the team perform last year, included hard working (feet always moving) Jake ...

Esmark Stars prospects who are worth following up on if you're a Prep School or NAHL team include the likes of Justin Adamski (good finisher), Billy Rapone (sharp passing Dman), Nick Carretta (hard ...

Colorado hockey is certainly on the rise, and elite level prospects like Noah Prokop (one of the best players in the country, and an NTDP candidate), Bryan Lockner (natural goal scorer), Mason Mannek ...

The Ottawa area 2001 player crop is an intriguing one for sure, and five players who will likely be on the radar of every OHL team for the 2017 draft are household names (in fourteen year old hockey ...

OHL scouts all have Waterloo prospects Nathan Torchia (one of the top 2000 DOB goaltenders in the world), Mitchell Hoelscher (slick forward with elite skills sets), Nathan George (smart player with ...

Vancouver Giants 2015 draft selection Lagerstrom (2000 - 6'2 - 180 - Shattuck St. Mary's) will be good enough to step in as a sixteen year old and play in the WHL, however, his plan is to pursue the ...

The Scouting News is pleased to release our year end WHL bantam draft top 250 player prospect rankings. The list was compiled for us this year by former WHL scout Sean Wilson (Saskatoon Blades, Prince Albert Raiders and Seattle Thunderbirds). Sean was in attendance this season evaluating players in person at all major tournaments, as well as the BC Cup, Alberta Cup, SaskFirst and the Hockey Manitoba POE's. A few players with very intriguing rankings in Sean's final list include the likes of late season risers Tyler Popowich, Paycen Bjorklund, Caiden Daley, Eric Florchuk, Ryan Chyzowski, Eli Zummack, Kaleb Bulych, Cole Clayton and many others of note.

In the past fifteen years The Scouting News has exclusively interviewed many of the games brightest stars FIRST (long before they were stars)! The alumni list the likes of John Carlson, Cam Fowler, Alex Pietrangelo, Kevin Shattenkirk, Aaron Ekblad, Torey Krug, Micheal Del Zotto, Eric Johnson, Morgan Reilly, Ryan McDonagh, Seth Jones and a ton of others, and today we're proud to introduce you to a future star, who'll one day be a high NHL first round draft pick, Bode Wilde, a huge 6'3", 184 pounds defender with a big shot, size, skill and offensive smarts (70 points in 57 games this season) to boot!

Everyone seems to be all over the place this year when it comes to the long term outlook for Ryan Merkley (D Toronto Junior Canadians 2000) so we sought to find the one common denominator today by asking an informed source to narrow all the varied feedback down to the four conclusive queries, such as (a) Is he as good as Sean Day at the same age, (b) What sets him apart as a player prospect, (c) Is he the consensus best player in the draft, (d) Does he have NHL draft upside?

Every OHL and NCAA D1 team dreams of having a player like Busby (Right Defence, Don Mills Flyers, 2000, 5'10", 167) in the lineup. Intense hustlers on the back end, who impose their will around the zone, corral the puck effectively, make a great first pass while also being mobile, intelligent and gifted enough to keep up with the teams best forwards and mount lethal offensive forays are always in demand, and, in our book, Dennis exemplifies all these qualities to a tee!

One scout delineated the long term upside (career projection) of Akil Thomas (Toronto Marlies, 2000, Forward) for us today by elaborating on the following (a) Is he a top five player for the draft based on his skillsets and raw speed alone, (b) Will he show up to report in the OHL, or will he head to college (he's a smart kid, with IVY league grades), (c) In terms of character, why do many scouts believe he's a can't miss prospect?

There is no other way to put it, Derek Seguin (2000, Timmins Bantam AAA Eagles, 5'10, 165) has been assertive enough this year in MANY aspects to convince scouts he is a legitimate top two round draft contender. This hardworking, skilled and speedy forward really put himself on the map at the Big Nickel International Tournament, and many believe he may have been even higher on our rankings list if he wasn't playing in an isolated Northern Ontario locale.

We'll go on the record today and state the following, if Shepard (F, NSWC Winterhawks, 5'7, 145, 2000) was 4 or 5 inches taller we would be talking about him as a top ten WHL bantam draft pick for the 2015 draft right here, right now. Generally teams aren't keen on selecting smaller forwards, however, we don't see Jackson getting passed up by to many teams on draft day 2015, because he's a safe bet for next level success with his old school Butch Goring and Ken Linseman style of game!

Another Tkachuk (1999, F, St. Louis Jr. Blues U14, 5'9, 150) looks to be headed to the NTDP program, and we believe long term Brady may just end up being the best of the bunch as he'll get an extra year to develop, grow and get selected with the 2000 age group when his NHL draft year comes up in 2018!

The 2015 QMJHL draft is not that far away in time and we are making the last ditch effort of identifying prospects who should be on the radar with teams without fail going into the Draft Day and, let us say, we think Logan ONeil (6'0", 165), whose 37 points in 34 regular season games were a solid boost to the Cape Breton Tradesmen in a campaign fraught with adversity this season, definitely needs to be a high QMJHL Draft Selection without a doubt!

One scout drew us a pretty clear picture of where Danil Antropov (Don Mills Flyers 2000 6'1") fits into the crop of top 2000's in the nation by answering the following questions (a) Where does he truly belong on our draft list, and were we out to lunch with our last ranking, (b) Will bloodlines, size and potential factor in where he gets drafted, (c) What is the story with this player off the ice and in the dressing room, (d) Which weaknesses in his game could cause his stock to drop on draft day, (e) How much has this player developed in the past year?

We're literally shocked at how much BC recruit Jacob Tortora has improved playing north of the border in Canada the season for the Don Mills Flyers, in a pressure situation where he has literally dozens of eyes following him many a game and trying to ascertain how well he is living up to the preseason five star hockey press clippings!

A WHL team that drafts Chorney's (RD Edge Mountaineers, 5'11, 186) in the first round of the 2015 process will be getting, in our opinion, the biggest sleeper prospect of the first round! Few players in the 2000 age group in Canada have improved as much as Austin has over the past twenty months. If this rapid progress continues it would not be out of the question to one day see this player high on the projected 2018 NHL draft list! Why are we so certain that long term success is inevitable for this player? First and foremost, we can see his base has been set up tremendously, and we believe his projectable pro stride and the ability to cover ground in all directions will serve as a great developmental foundation for building other aspects of his game moving forward (after all, it all starts with the athleticism, and hips)!

There is a lot to like about Yohan Plamondon (F, Conquerants, 5'08", 140) as a player, however, is he first round QMJHL draft material with his relatively small frame, and lack of size? One scout answers unequivocally!

We wouldn't be surprised to see Haskins (Rice Prep, 5'9", 150, 2000) on the shortlist for the USA NTDP program in a year or so. There is no doubt in our mind this speedy forward will one day be a solid two way hockey player in the D1 ranks, who'll be able to generate a lot of opportunities for himself with his hard driving style, and ability to win one on one battles in high traffic areas of the ice.